Two dozen Indiana hospitals to be fined for high rates of infections, patient injuries
Twenty-four Indiana hospitals will be docked by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services—the highest number since the program began six years ago.
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Health care systems scramble to offer latest in cancer care
Indiana University Health’s new Schwarz Cancer Center is the latest addition to a crowded landscape of cancer centers and hospital oncology programs popping up around central Indiana.
IBJ Podcast: Here’s why the feds are suing Community Health with help from a whistleblower
IBJ’s John Russell has written about the Community case and talks with host Mason King about the details, what it means for Community Health and how the lawsuit fits into a larger effort by the federal government to claw back what it considers “unjust enrichment” by hospital systems.
Lawsuit throws spotlight on physicians’ hospital referrals
A high-stakes suit this month by the federal government against Community Health Network is raising questions about when they are proper and when they cross the line.
Feds accuse Community Health of submitting false claims to Medicare
The Justice Department said the financial arrangements were outlined in a whistleblower suit brought by Thomas Fischer, who served as Community Health’s CFO from 2005 until his sudden exit in 2013. In a separate suit, Fischer claimed he was fired in retaliation for questioning possibly illegal practices.
More Americans dying at home rather than in hospitals
Deaths in nursing homes also have declined, according to Wednesday’s report in the New England Journal of Medicine.
New $40M VA clinic set to open in summer 2021
The facility to be built off State Road 46 on Terre Haute’s east side will combine currently separate primary care and mental health clinics. It will be equipped to serve 10,000 veterans.
Q&A: Keeping health care workers safe
Joe Anderson, 62, is executive director of protective services for Methodist, University and Riley hospitals, responsible for physical security for more than 4,500 employees and property of more than 10 million square feet.
Hospital association contests Ball State monopoly study
The Indiana Hospital Association is disputing a Ball State University study of Hoosier hospitals that blames part of the high cost of health care on monopolies.
Addictions-treatment provider Fairbanks merging with Community Health Network
The merger, announced Wednesday, is designed to give patients a more comprehensive approach to addiction and behavioral health services,” including treatment for serious mental illness and a psychiatric intensive care unit.
Hospital monopolies drive up health care costs in Indiana, study says
Over the past two decades, Hoosiers’ health care costs have gone from below-average to much-higher-than-average, according to a Ball State University study.
St. Vincent faces expensive growth options
The hospital system’s 45-year-old campus will likely need hundreds of millions of dollars in upgrades in coming years to keep it competitive long term.
High-tech rival devices on verge of making stethoscopes obsolete
Dr. Paul Wallach, an executive associate dean at Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis, predicts that within the next decade, hand-held ultrasound devices will replace the stethoscope as part of the routine physical exam.
Vaping has grown into full-blown health crisis in Indiana, panel says
Indiana health officials are investigating 30 cases of severe lung injury linked to vaping. Eight of those have been confirmed—most of them among individuals between the ages of 16 and 29. Earlier this month, the state confirmed the first death linked to vaping.
Doctors’ pagers finally headed to gadget graveyard
Since the first pager was patented in 1949 and used in New York’s Jewish Hospital, millions of doctors have done their daily rounds in hospitals with the gadget clipped to their waistband, always ready to hear the beep that might signal a medical crisis on the other end. But hospitals are now phasing them out.
Community Health sues insurer for refusing to cover $6M in damage at east-side hospital
The dispute centers on extensive cracking in the foundation at Community Hospital East, which just underwent a massive, $175 million upgrade with a new patient tower.
Veterans’ suicide issue a priority for Trump administration, VA secretary says
Robert Wilkie, secretary of veterans affairs, told the American Legion National Convention in Indianapolis on Wednesday that the issue needs urgent attention.
IU Simon Cancer Center lands $13.8M grant, comprehensive cancer center designation
The cancer center, opened in 2008, is now one of just 51 “comprehensive cancer centers” in the nation and the only one in Indiana.
Anthem’s fight with doctors shows risks for surprise-billing fix
Doctors fighting a reimbursement battle with one of the biggest U.S. health insurers want to make sure that ending surprise medical bills doesn’t come at the expense of their pay.
IU Health executive Kitchell leaving ‘for other opportunities’
Ryan Kitchell oversees a wide variety of business operations at the state’s largest health system. His departure comes as IU Health is in the midst of numerous capital projects.